Estero Development Report

Volume 3, Number 4
Issued August 2003

Edited by ECCO--the Estero Concerned Citizens Organization

For further information, to provide information or to add names to our mailing list, Email Don Eslick at doneslick@worldnet.att.net or call him at 949-4050

·September Opportunities for Citizen Participation In Protecting Estero's Quality of Life

Date	Time	Event	Location
Tuesday, September 2nd	9:30 a.m.	Board of County Commissioners Consideration of Villagio Bonus Density Amendment	Commission Chambers, 2120 Main Street, 2^nd Floor
Tuesday, September 2nd	6:00 p.m.	Roadway Landscape Advisory Committee Meeting	County Community Development Building, Conf. Room 3A, 1500 Monroe St., Ft Myers
Friday, September 5^th	10 a.m.	Bonita Springs Zoning Board Hearing on the proposed Communications Tower Adjacent to LighthouseBay	Bonita Springs Utilities Board Room, East Terry Street, BonitaSprings
Monday, September 8th	6 p.m.	Estero Community Planning Panel Meeting	Marsh Landing Clubhouse
Wednesday, September 10th	5 p.m.	Estero Design Review Committee review of Wal-Mart and Bell Terra Projects	The PerryRoomof The Vines Country Club
Friday, September 12th	2 p.m.	ECCO Council of Community Leaders Meeting	Marsh Landing Clubhouse
Tuesday, September 16^th	Evening	County Road 951 Public Meeting	SouthCountyRegional Library, Three Oaks Parkway
Tuesday, September 23^rd	9:30 a.m.	BOCC First Hearing on Road Impact Fee Changes	Commission Chambers, 2120 Main Street, 2^nd Floor
Thursday, September 25^th	5:30 p.m.	Estero Chamber Business After Hours, speaker Rep. Carol Greene	Fifth Third Bank; Corkscrew and US 41

Roadway Improvements

South Lee County's growth has appropriately stimulated large State and County road-building programs. Since many of these projects involve construction of new roads, traffic disruption in the area should be less of a problem than with road widening projects.

This month the Estero Development Report summarizes Lee County's 5 year road program for the Estero area. For those of you who have Photo programs on your computer a copy of the County's map of these projects is attached to this report.

Next month we hope to report on the State/Federal road construction program for Estero and to summarize the overall Estero road-building program.

Major County Road Projects Programmed
for Estero During the Next Five Years

Lee County DOT has programmed and funded nine major road projects for the Estero area during the next five years, through September 2008. Five of them will directly benefit Estero during that period; three will indirectly benefit Estero by providing alternatives to Estero roadways; and one will impact Estero long term if it eventually is constructed.

The five projects that are scheduled to be constructed by 2008 and will directly benefit Estero are:

Extension of Three Oaks Boulevard as a four lane road from Coconut Road to Terry Street in Bonita Springs;
Four-laning of Three Oaks from Corkscrew Road to Alico Road;
Construction of Sandy Lane as a four lane road from Corkscrew Road to Pelican Colony Boulevard;
Construction of Koreshan Boulevard as a four lane road over I-75 from Three Oaks Parkway to Ben Hill Griffin;
Four-laning of Corkscrew Road from Ben Hill Griffin to the eastern boundary of Wildcat Run.

The estimated cost of these projects is more than $85 million.

The three projects that will take some pressure off Estero roadways or provide Estero residents new travel alternatives are:

Six-laning of Alico Roadbetween US 41 and I-75. This project should provide some relief for Corkscrew Road, especially truck traffic relief;
Construction of Treeline Avenue, an extension of Ben Hill Griffin to the new mid-field terminal at the Southwest Florida Regional Airport.
Extension of Three Oaks Parkway from Alico Road to Daniels Parkway. This segment will complete Three Oaks as the third corridor from Naples to Ft. Myers and should provide some relief for US 41;

The first two projects are now underway and should be completed by 2005, while the third is not expected to be completed until about 2009. Lee County is investing over $33 million in these projects.

The long term project is the County Road 951 Extension alignment study. This three year study is costing Lee and Collier Counties about $2.8 million.

Sandy Lane -- Today Sandy Lane exists strictly as a two lane road connecting Corkscrew Road to Broadway Avenue, about one mile north of Corkscrew Road. It is located just east of the Seminole Gulf railroad tracks that, in turn, are parallel to and just east of US 41. However since 1995 the long range transportation plan of the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) has included Sandy Laneas a two lane road from Old 41 in northern Bonita Springs to Oriole Road in San Carlos Park.

The Need for an Extended Sandy Lane

The extension of Sandy Lane was not urgent until last October when the BOCC approved zoning for the 483 acre Coconut Point Town Center. The first 800,000 square feet of retail space in the Town Center, formerly known as the Simon Sun coast Mall, is scheduled to open for business in two years, the fall of 2005. Coconut Point is authorized a total of 1,800,000 square feet of retail, 300,000 square feet of office, 600 hotel rooms, 200 assisted living units and 1,000 homes.

Earlier this year a group related to Coconut Point's owners acquired another 102 acres between Williams and Corkscrew Roads from US 41 to the railroad tracks for another major, primarily retail development called North Pointe. The owners recently filed an application for zoning as a Development of Regional Impact in order to construct 550,000 square feet of retail, 120,000 square feet of office, 150 hotel rooms and 150 housing units on this property.

About two miles north of this site Wal-Mart has recently come forward with a proposal to build a 230,000 square foot super-center on the northeast corner of Koreshan Boulevard and US 41. In addition, the vast majority of the three miles of land along the western side of US 41 between Coconut Road and Corkscrew Road is vacant land zoned for commercial, mainly retail uses.

Finally at the southern end of the proposed Sandy Lane route in north Bonita Springs the Bernwood Business Park has been expanding rapidly and several strip shopping centers and office buildings have recently opened for business.

All of these US 41 businesses are or will soon be increasing traffic on US 41 and are the reason we need Sandy Lane as a north-south reliever for US 41. ·

Sandy Lane Extension Corridor Alignment Study

As a result of this activity on March 11^th the BOCC approved an agreement for over $200,000 with Cella & Associates to provide documented information needed by the County to reach a decision on the type, design and location of Sandy Lane between Old 41 in Bonita Springs and Oriole Road in San Carlos. The study will identify and evaluate alternative routes as well as the "no build" alternative. The process to be followed by the consultant will include: data collection; traffic projections; development of corridor alternatives; analysis of alternatives; and selection of the preferred corridor alternative.

Beginning in September or October the County will conduct several community meetings in order to receive citizen and business commentary on the alignment proposals. This will be a great opportunity for the citizens of Estero and Bonita Springs to voice their concerns about the need for this roadway, its route and location. Study the issue and come to the meetings prepared to voice your opinion about this important issue.

Next the consultant's Preliminary Report will be made available to the public and will be discussed at a Public Workshop, probably in November or December. Community participation is important at this stage of the planning process as well.

Subsequently there will be a public hearing on the Final Report and its recommendations followed by a vote of the BOCC to approve or modify the recommendations. At each of these stages there will be opportunities for public testimony. By May 2004 Sandy Lane's route from Old 41 to Oriole Roadwill be determined.

Coconut Point's Plan for Sandy Lane

From the beginning of their zoning efforts several years ago, the developers of Coconut Point have advocated construction of a 4 lane Sandy Lane from Corkscrew Road to the southern end of their property which is the northern boundary of the City of Bonita Springs, a distance of about 3 miles. The north end of the road would start on Corkscrew Road just east of the railroad tracks; it would proceed south crossing the railroad tracks north of Williams Road and generally continue south along the western side of the railroad tracks.

The developers correctly assumed that the southern segment of Sandy Lane between Old 41 and their property would not be available when their project needs a southern entrance and exit, so they plan to build a 4 lane road proceeding west from Sandy Lane to US 41 directly across US 41 from Pelican Landing Boulevard, the northern entrance to Pelican Landing. Right-of-way along the tracks south of this point to the southern end of the Coconut Point property will be set aside for Sandy Lane to be extended to Old 41.

Prior to the initial opening of Coconut Point in 2005 the developers will construct Sandy Lane from Corkscrew Road to the Pelican Colony Boulevard exit as a 4 lane road. The County will reimburse the developers for the cost of the first two lanes of Sandy Lane from Corkscrew Road through their property from impact fees paid by the developers. However the developers are so convinced that 4 lanes are needed that they are paying the total cost of the two additional lanes, about $6 million, at their expense with no opportunity for recovery from any governmental body.

The "Sandy Lane Gap" Bottleneck

When Coconut Point opens its first 800,000 square feet in the fall of 2005 the area north of Coconut Road will be served by roads containing 18 north-south lanes -- 6 on US 41; 4 on Sandy Lane; 4 on Three Oaks Parkway and 4 on I-75.

At the same time the area south of Coconut Road to Old 41 will be served by only 10 north -south lanes -- 6 on US 41 and 4 on I-75,

And the area from Old 41 to Terry Street will be served by only 12 north-south lanes-- 6 on US 41, 2 on Old 41 and 4 on I-75.

Consequently, traffic coming from the north on Sandy Lane and Three Oaks Parkway are forced to merge into US 41 at Coconut Road or Pelican Colony Boulevard if they want to continue south. That is 14 lanes converging into 6 lanes from Pelican Colony Boulevard to Old 41. Thereafter, Old 41 provides two and later four additional lanes and a little relief from the congestion in the bottleneck.

These sections of US 41 are already congested at rush hour and during the season. Lee county traffic studies show that north-south traffic in south Lee County is increasing at a rate of 10% per year.

An analysis prepared by Lee County DOT for the Coconut Point Town Center zoning estimated that in 2006 US 41, between Old 41 and Coconut Road, would carry 25,000 more vehicles per day than US 41 just north of Coconut Road, due to the absence of Three Oaks Parkway and Sandy Lane.

Even after Three Oaks opens in 2007 the Bottleneck area will still be short 4 lanes unless Sandy Lane is extended to Old 41.

According of Coconut Point Traffic Analysis statistics the segment of US 41 from Old 41 south to Terry Street is about 20% more congested today than the ''bottleneck area". With the opening of Coconut Point and other developments, traffic on this segment is projected to increase by 50% between 2002 and 2006. As a result US 41 in this area will be 30% over-capacity before the six-laning is completed and will be at full capacity even after the widening in 2006.

Six-laning US 41

from Corkscrew Road to San Carlos Park

During July and August progress has been made regarding all three phases of this important road project -- design, right-of-way and construction.

Design-- Although FDOT needs another loan from Lee County in order to pay for the design of this road segment, FDOT is moving ahead with the design phase while the County processes the additional funds. The design should be completed by the end of 2004. Opportunities for public participation should commence soon.

Right-of-Way Funding -- Local FDOT officials have recommended that the Regional FDOT Office submit an application for right-of-way funding of the project to the State Infrastructure Bank which was recently funded by the Florida Legislature for the next two fiscal years. This application would be for $7 million to be made available in the Fall/Winter of 2004, when the roadway design is sufficiently completed so that right-of-way acquisition can begin. The regional decision-makers will decide next week if they will apply for these funds. In the past Infrastructure Bank funds have only been used to pay roadway construction costs. The final decision regarding the projects to be funded with Infrastructure Bank funds will be made by FDOT executives in mid-November.

If FDOT does not provide Infrastructure Bank funding for this project, we will continue to work with Lee County and the private sector to find temporary funding that will accelerate right-of-way funding for this segment by 18 months.

Construction Funding -- On August 22^nd the Metropolitan Planning Organization of Lee County approved funding $16 million for construction of this segment of US 41 in 2008-09. This is the first time that construction of this segment has been included in the Capital Improvement Program for the county. If funding of the right-of-way for the segment can be accelerated then we will need to find ways to accelerate these funds as well. BOCC approval of the proposed increase in road impact fees relevant to state roads is a possible future source of this funding.

Treeline Road-- When the new Midfield Terminal at Southwest Florida Regional Airport opens for business in two years, Estero residents will have a new alternative route to the airport. By then Treeline Road will be completed as a 4 lane road extending from the intersection of Ben Hill Griffin Parkway and Alico Road to the new Terminal, located south of the existing airport runways. Thus, in 2005 Estero residents will be able to enter Ben Hill Griffin at Corkscrew Road and travel directly to the airport without using either US 41 or I-75.

Recent Estero Growth Statistics

During the first seven months of 2003 one thousand thirty three (1,033) housing units were permitted in Estero with a total building value (exclusive of land) of $156 million. The following table shows the pattern for the first 7 months during last four years:

Year	Number of Units Permitted	Building Value of Permitted Units
2000	1,122	$154,418,948
2001	1,399	213,746,261
2002	905	153,144,578
2003	1,033	155,939,745

The table shows the decline caused by the tragedy of September 11, 2001 and the subsequent recovery in the number of housing units permitted. The small increase in building value from 2002 to 2003 reflects the increase in the share of multi-family units and the weakness in the high-end housing market.

The building value of commercial properties in Estero during each of these periods was quite small when compared with residential development, except in 2000 when the permit for the Hyatt Coconut Point Resort was issued.

The building value of residential units in Estero continues to make a major contribution to the Unincorporated Lee County total. Through the first seven months of 2003 Estero contributed 21% of the total for that area. When compared to Bonita Springs, Estero continues to produce far more housing. Through the first seven months of 2003 the building value of residential units permitted in Estero was two and one-third times that of the City of Bonita Springs.

The Changing Pattern of
Residential Development in Estero

Since 2000 the center of residential development in Estero has moved east and north. From 2000 through 2002 The Brooks dominated housing development in Estero, averaging about 40% of the units permitted each year. Units permitted in The Brooks peaked in 2001 when over 900 units were permitted in that development. During the first half of 2003 The Brooks only accounted for 21.6% of all housing units permitted in Estero.

Another major residential community that has been built out during this period is Pelican Sound. Over 500 housing units were permitted in Pelican Sound in 2000; about 100 in 2001 and less than 30 during the last 18 months.

The third major residential community that is approaching build-out is Stoneybrook. Over 380 housing units were permitted in Stoneybrook in 2001, its peak year.

New communities whose building permits have replaced these more mature developments are Grandezza, Rookery Pointe, Colonial Oaks, Villagio, The Cascades, The Colony in Pelican Landing, the Hyatt Timeshares and a new phase at Breckenridge. Most of these communities will not be completed for several years.

Residential Development Progress

Villagio

Since May 24^th when Villagio's sales office opened for business 70 sales contract have been written. Since the beginning of 2003 Villagio has applied for building permits for over 200 "Coach Home Villa" units. Eventually Villagio will contain 36 sixteen unit buildings on a 70 acre site located on the east side of Three Oaks Parkway just south of Koreshan Boulevard.

Belle Lago

Toll Brothers has begun construction of ten model homes and a sales and design center at Belle Lago, located just east of the railroad track on the north side of Koreshan Boulevard. Four furnished units and the sales center are expected to be completed in November and the remaining 6 units in April 2004. Eventually this development will contain 437 detached villas and single-family estate homes and a wide range of amenities on 240 acres.

Bella Terra (formerly The Habitat)

U.S. Homes, the Lennar Homebuilding Division and Dade Residential Developers have joined forces to build 1,824 Mediterranean design single family and multi-family homes on a 999 acre site located on the south side of Corkscrew Road three miles east of I-75. Site preparation is well along for the initial phase of this major project. In addition to the homes, Bella Terra will contain 20 lakes, large preserve areas and many amenities. Sales at Bella Terra are expected to begin in January 2004.

Stoneybrook

U. S. Homes, developer of this major residential community, expects to be sold out by the end of this year. Upon completion Stoneybrook will contain 1,032 housing units. All these residences will have been sold in a little more than 5 years. Stoneybrook is located southeast of the I-75 Corkscrew Road intersection.

West Bay Club

Lehman Brothers, Inc., the New York based real estate investment firm, has acquired the West Bay Club, thus eliminating the "bankruptcy" cloud that has hung over the project for several years. As a result renovations have begun on the community's private beach club on Little Hickory Island and the Golf Clubhouse is now being designed. West Bay is located at the west end of Williams Road, contains 868 acres of which 509 will be preserved and will eventually include about 1,100 housing units including three high rise buildings.

Estero River Heights

This community of 94 single family homes is being constructed on 30 acres along the southern banks of the Estero River just north of Corkscrew Road on the east side of Sandy Lane. Presently, two model homes and some of the project's infrastructure are underway on the site.

Residential Developments Seeking Zoning

The following projects were presented to the Estero community at a meeting sponsored by the Estero Community Planning Panel (ECPP) during July or August:

The Reserve at Estero

Toll Brothers, one of the country's largest residential developers, has acquired and will soon apply for rezoning of 160 acres on the north side of Koreshan Boulevard directly across from the Cascades and just east of the firm's Belle Largo residential development. The planned rezoning would provide for 500 single family homes instead of the currently zoned 613 residential units (single, multi-family, townhouses and two-family attached duplexes) and would eliminate 140,000 square feet of commercial that includes such things as auto parts, repair and service, restaurants, bars, night clubs, vehicle and equipment dealers, building material sales, car washes, hotels/motels, factory outlets and numerous other commercial and retail uses. They also plan to reduce the number of access points to the property from Koreshan Boulevard from 5 entrances to 1 entrance and to increase the width of the buffers and landscaping along Koreshan. Elimination of the commercial development on the site will greatly enhance the appearance of this road, which when extended over I-75, will become the western entrance to FGCU.

Cypress Shadows

This major housing project is located on the south side of Corkscrew Road east of Wildcat Run and west of the planned Habitat development, now called Bella Terra. This rezoning request is desired by the developer in order to add a golf course to the project. This environmentally sensitive site consists of 353 acres, approximately 253 acres of which are classified as jurisdictional wetlands by either the Water Management District or the Corps of Engineers. The development plan would impact 120 acres of these wetlands in order to permit the project to contain 750 housing units, with multi-family units near Corkscrew Road and single family homes farther south. The project is designed to concentrate the development in the smallest possible area by allowing multi-family units in buildings up to five stories in height. An offsite wetland mitigation area of 160 acres is planned just south of Wildcat Run. This area is expected to eventually be turned over to the CREW Land and Trust for permanent preservation. If any five story buildings are constructed they bill be located adjacent to a section of the Bella Terra that is commercially zoned.

Commercial
Development Progress

Miromar Development Corporation Headquarters

Construction has started on Miromar Development's corporate offices within the boundaries of the Miromar Outlets Mall property just northeast of the I-75 Corkscrew Road intersection. This two story Mediterranean style building will contain 24,000 square feet of commercial space -- 14,000 square feet of office space and 10,000 of retail space. Another 60,000 square feet of retail will also be underway as part of the 4^th phase of the Miromar Outlets Mall project, bringing the total area of the project up to 460,000 square feet.

Miromar International Design Center

According to press reports 250,000 square feet of this 400,000 square foot facility will begin construction later this year on the south side of Corkscrew Road just east of I-75. The top two floors of this 3 story structure will cater to professional interior designers, while the first floor will be open to the public. As of mid-June, 40% of phase one had already been leased to 26 firms ranging from furniture stores to kitchen centers, fabric dealers, closet design firms, and stone, marble and tile vendors. The developers plan to begin turning over space to tenants by the fall of 2004 so that they can prepare their shops for opening for the 2004-05 snowbird season.

Embassy Suites

According to press reports and a sign on the property a seven story, 150 room Embassy Suites Hotel with restaurant and convention center will be developed by Carroll Property Investments in the Estero Interstate Commerce Park on the northwest corner of I-75 and Corkscrew Road. In addition to the anchor parcel where the hotel will be located, the development, contains eight outlots around the perimeter of the property that can be developed with the usual interstate type of businesses designed to serve the traveling public -- gas station/convenience stores, fast food restaurants etc. The Main Street Overlay will impact the appearance of this development but not the uses because the property was zoned many years before the Estero Community Plan and its Land Development Code standards were adopted by the BOCC.

Coconut Square

International Realty Consultants reports that contracts have been signed for three of the five commercial parcels on this property located on the southwest corner of US 41 and Coconut Road. In anticipation of the construction of these facilities the site has recently been prepared for development with the installation of utilities and interior roads. The developer of a three-story office building for Coldwell Banker has presented those plans to the Estero Design Review Committee as well as WCI's design committee. WCI formerly owned the property and retains design approval authority on all projects built on the site. We are informed that the other two sites under contract will house a bank and a dental office building.

Gas Stations/Convenience Stores

Chevron has proposed two gas station/convenience stores with car washes on properties long zoned for such uses. One station would be located on Corkscrew Road at the east end of the Corkscrew Village Shopping Center. The second station would be located on Ben Hill Griffin just north of the McDonalds in the Grand Oaks Shopping Center.

The ECPP pointed out that Estero has very stringent requirements for gas station/convenience stores in the Estero section of the Lee County Land Development Code and neither of these proposals meets these requirements. The Corkscrew Village site is not the required 180 foot depth and the Grand Oaks site is within 500 feet of another filling station. Unfortunately, county staff has determined that these new gas station/convenience store standards do not apply to these projects because the existing zoning on these properties are specific and predate the adoption of Estero's gas station/convenience store standards. On the other hand our detailed appearance standards, including lighting, signage, landscaping, canopy design etc. will apply to these projects. Thus, we may not be able to prevent such projects where existing zoning permits them, but we can cause them to look a lot better than all the others in the county.

Estero Fourth Fire Station

The Estero Fire Rescue District has contracted to purchase one acre from Oakbrook Properties, the developers of Coconut Point Town Center, in order to construct its fourth fire station to serve southwest Estero. The station will be located on the east side of US 41 across from the Fountain Lakes community. Construction is expected to start in about two months with station operations scheduled for summer 2004.

This will permit the district to provide faster service to the following residential communities: Fountain Lakes, West Bay Club, Marsh Landing, Coconut Shores, Meadowbrook, El Dorado Acres, The Colony, the northern part of Pelican Landing and the western part of The Brooks. In addition the Hyatt Coconut Point Resort and its new timeshares, the Bonita Community Health Center, The Brooks Commerce Center and the Walden Office Park will be better served by the new facility.

Commercial Developments Seeking Zoning

The following projects were presented to the Estero community at a meeting sponsored by the Estero Community Planning Panel (ECPP) during July or August:

Williams-Three Oaks CPD

The developer of this 10 acre project, located on the northwest corner of Three Oaks and Williams Road, presented revised plans for a neighborhood retail development. The rezoning would allow a range of commercial uses that generally comply with the neighborhood commercial center. It will be developed as a campus and not as a strip mall and individual buildings may be sold as commercial condominiums. Out of 80,000 square feet requested no more than 30,000 could be used for retail. All the buildings would have to satisfy design standards established for the project. The Estero Community Plan discourages retail development on this part of Three Oaks.

The panel suggested that the site would make a great office park, but it is not suitable for retail because of the two-story homes adjacent the site, currently a citrus grove. In addition there is already a large amount of retail zoned in the vicinity of the project. The Panel also suggested the following:

the service areas should not be visible from the adjoining two-story homes, and
sidewalks and landscaping should be provided adjacent to each building, and
in order to avoid large traffic generators a maximum square footage should be established for each building in the project.

There was strong objection to any retail development on this site from adjoining residents who thought they would be living next to a citrus grove.

Terezei CPD

This 4.3 acre project, located adjacent to the RV Park just north of the Vines, is seeking zoning approval in order to build a restaurant, a retail building and a general office building.

Wal-Mart

Representatives of Wal-Mart presented their rezoning proposal to the ECPP at their July meeting. This 228,000 square foot super-store project would be located on the northeast corner of US 41 and Koreshan Boulevard. About 100 Estero residents raised many issues concerning the proposal. Wal-Mart is required by the Estero Community Plan to file a report with Lee County reporting all the issues raised by the community at the meeting and specifying how they will respond to each of them. The developers rezoning application is not complete without this report. Wal-Mart recently completed this report but has not yet filed its application with the County.